<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Scars are Sexy by Cagedbird30</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27867509">Scars are Sexy</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cagedbird30/pseuds/Cagedbird30'>Cagedbird30</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Avatar: The Last Airbender</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Bending (Avatar TV), F/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-11 00:22:23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>7,657</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27867509</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cagedbird30/pseuds/Cagedbird30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Detective Zuko Sozin is a frequent flyer at Republic City General Hospital. It's one of the disadvantages of the job but he doesn't mind.</p><p>Dr. Katara Rivers is a first year emergency medical resident that is assigned to nursing him back to health every time he comes in.</p><p>A collection of all the times Zuko ends up in the hospital and the bond he builds with Katara.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Katara/Zuko (Avatar)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>57</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>231</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>His amber eyes flutter open slowly as a white bright light begins shining through his pupils. He groans and shuts his eyes closed before trying to open them again.</p><p>“Welcome back Detective,” a friendly female voice says. He opens his eyes and his vision is blurry but eventually clears.</p><p>He finds himself inches away from an unknown woman wearing a white coat. She has sun kissed skin and long brown wavy hair pulled up into a neat pony tail.</p><p>She smiles and reveals her perfect teeth.</p><p>He’s quiet, taking in his surrounding before groaning once more.</p><p>He is at the hospital… again. To state he is a frequent flyer at the Republic City General Hospital was understatement.</p><p>“My name is Katara Rivers, I’m one of the Emergency Medicine Residents,” she states.</p><p>Zuko nods. He’s been to RCGH many times but she does not look familiar.</p><p>She gives him a small smile before continuing. “I need to assess your mental status as you’ve suffered a head injury. I’m going to ask you a few questions.”</p><p>He looks down. He’s wearing dark wash jeans and a fitted black t-shirt. There’s a male nurse in the room writing some things down.</p><p>“Okay,” he whispers out, his voice raspy and dry.</p><p>She flashes a light in his eye again and gives him some commands to follow it or look behind her.</p><p>“What’s your name?” she asks while holding a finger for him to follow with his eyes.</p><p>“Zuko Sozin,” he replies easily.</p><p>She asks for his birthday, revealing that he is 27 years old.</p><p>She asks for his occupation to which he replies that he is a detective for Republic City.</p><p>“Good,” she says in encouragement. “Last question: Who is the current senator for Republic City?”</p><p>“Aang,” he replies.</p><p>He watches as the doctor’s crystal blue eyes widen in horror. “Nurse! Get Dr. Bumi immediately and call up to the OR” she commands.</p><p>Zuko scrambles up into a sitting position, his eyes are just as wide in fear. “No! what’s wrong?!” he yells.</p><p>He searches the doctor’s eyes and they go from horrified to amusement as she starts to laugh. Zuko immediately frowns and looks over to the nurse who is also chuckling lightly.</p><p>He is shooting death glares at both of them when the curtain opens up and Dr. Bumi enters.</p><p>“Ah! Zuko, good to see you’re awake,” he says, greeting the man with a smirk.</p><p>The other doctor has finally collected herself and is now regarding him with an apologetical look. “I’m sorry Detective. You are fine, I promise.” Her expression softens as she looks at him, noting that he still looks upset.</p><p>Dr. Bumi comes over and gives him a pat on the back. “Ah lighten up Zuko, I put her up to it,” he confesses.</p><p>Zuko sighs and after taking a moment to collect himself, he lets out an easy chuckle.</p><p>“Bumi, you old geezer, I’m going to remember this next time you want me to get you out of those parking tickets,” he responds coolly.  </p><p>Dr. Bumi lets out a wild chuckle, the man is about 77 years old and still working, doing a better job than most of the younger more established doctors. “Atta boy Zuko,” he says with a wink. “Feel better and don’t be upset with Dr. Rivers, I was the one that put her up to it,” he says more sternly.</p><p>Zuko nods and turns his amber eyes back to doctor.</p><p>He can think a little more clearly now and has noticed she looks to be about his age and is very beautiful. He also doesn’t miss the way the nurse stares at her when she’s not looking. He looks over at the name tag on man. <em>Jet, RN, BSN</em></p><p>Zuko mentally scoffs, he thinks that’s the dumbest name he’s ever heard.</p><p>“Again, I’m sorry about that Detective. I am one of the new residents so when my attending asks for a special favor, I kind of have to comply,” she says with a sheepish expression.</p><p>He sighs and nods as he starts to sit back. “So, am I good to go?” he asks. He looks down at his watch and notices the time. <em>Shit</em>. He’s supposed to be home to feed Trixie. He feels around his pockets for his phone before fishing it out to text Toph to stop by his place to help with Trixie.</p><p>The doctor is now looking at his chart and going over everything. “Not quite. Do you know why you’re here today?” Her blue eyes lock onto his golden ones.</p><p>Zuko looks away and tries to think about what happened today. He was working a case and they were chasing down two assailants. He followed one of them into a warehouse but can’t think of anything past that.</p><p>He shakes his head after a moment. “Not really,” he admits. “I do have a raging headache though.”</p><p>She looks up and gives him a smirk. “That’s because you took a baseball bat to the back of the head,” she explains easily, as if it was a casual occurrence. “We did a CT and didn’t find any traumatic injury, no swelling, or signs of bleeding.”</p><p>She continues to go over her findings and explained at home care and the importance of getting lots of rest. He groans but she lifts a silent eyebrow which silences him into submission. The new resident was definitely bossy, he thought to himself.</p><p>He agrees to all of her terms and nods trying to keep a calm expression, although with his scar he naturally has a scowling expression.</p><p>She smiles at him once more. “Well you should be good to head out Detective. I’m sure the lady in your life is eager to see you.”</p><p>If Zuko wasn’t such an awkward turtleduck he would’ve caught on to the loaded statement. But instead he doesn’t think much about what she has said, only really hearing that he is good to go.</p><p>He sits up rather quickly. “Good, Trixie is probably getting inpatient,” he whispers lowly.</p><p>Zuko isn’t sure if his eyes are playing tricks on him, but he swears she frowns at his words, but she quickly recovers and just nods.</p><p>He chuckles a bit to himself. He’s probably seeing things that are not there. There is no way the beautiful emergency medicine resident would care about his relationship status.</p><p>Creating a mental checklist he seems to have everything on him. His gun is strapped to his waist. His wallet is in his back pocket, he has his phone, and he sees his leather jacket on a chair next to him.</p><p>A text comes in from Toph stating that she’s already at his place and feeding Trixie dinner. He looks over and sees that the doctor is writing some notes on his chart and discussing some things with the nurse, Jet. Before heading out of the area he decides to do one more thing.</p><p>Zuko unlocks his phone and finds the perfect picture. He walks over to doctor towering over where she’s sitting at her desk in the corner.</p><p>He holds out his phone and she looks up at him with a confused expression before taking a look at what he’s showing her. The picture is of him on the floor with a black cat laying on his bare chest.</p><p>She couldn’t help but think it was the cutest thing she’s ever seen. She looks back up to him.</p><p>“Trixie,” he explains with a pointed look.</p><p>“Oh,” she responds, blushing lightly.</p><p>He gives her a smirk. “She is the only one I come home to,” he admits in low whisper.</p><p>His voice is captivating and Katara gets goosebumps.</p><p>Jet looks furious in the corner of the room watching the two of them interact.</p><p>Zuko turns and pulls the curtain open. “See you around doc” he says as he walks away, not looking back.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>The idea for this came to me randomly and I had to get to writing it. It's not meant to be crazy long and mostly just fluffy but will likely have some very small angst at one point.</p>
<p>Also sorry for the tense change in this chapter. I typically don't like writing in present tense but felt it was appropriate for the first chapter. I may go back and adjust it though. But everything else will be written like it is in this chapter.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Fridays have historically been unpredictable in the ER at RCGH.</p>
<p>Katara found herself with her hands in her hair bent over her workstation. There was so much to do and the patients would not stop flowing in.</p>
<p>She checked her watch and sighed. She still had 6 hours left of her brutal 16-hour shift.</p>
<p>“Katara, you okay?” She watched one of the Nurse Practitioners peek into the resident work area.</p>
<p>She gave a small smile and nodded. “Just another day in the life of an ER Resident Suki,” she responded.</p>
<p>Suki chuckled. “Well, I know you’re drowning but I have something to cheer you up.”</p>
<p>Katara raised an eyebrow in curiosity.</p>
<p>“I’ve got a VIP client in room 4, he needs stiches over his caudal abdomen. He got cut by a knife.”</p>
<p>She grabbed her coat and stethoscope. “Wait, what do you mean by VIP client?” she asked, turning around to look at Suki.</p>
<p>The auburn-haired girl smirked at her. “One word: Bumi.”</p>
<p>Katara couldn’t help but roll her eyes. She loved Dr. Bumi but she kept getting some of the strangest cases sent her way.</p>
<p>She walked quickly down the hall and knocked lightly before opening the door to room 4. She picked up the chart hanging outside and froze as she looked up to the patient.</p>
<p>Before her was a very shirtless Zuko. He had a superficial cut across his lower abdomen but Katara couldn’t help but skim over the rest of his bare upper body before coughing and looking up to meet his gaze.</p>
<p>“Detective Sozin, welcome back. I was warned that I would see you again,” she said, attempting to make some conversation.</p>
<p>He grumbled something too low for her to hear but she chuckled anyways at his very grumpy expression.</p>
<p>She grabbed supplies to start working on the cut on his abdomen. As she reached over to inject him with small local anesthetic, he abruptly grabbed her wrist applying just enough pressure to stop her.</p>
<p>She startled and looked up at him. “I can take it, I don’t need an injection,” he said simply. He sat back on the inclined hospital bed.</p>
<p>“If you say so,” she responded. She began to clean around the wound, watching his expression but he barely reacted.</p>
<p>There was a comfortable silence in the room as she put herself to work.</p>
<p>“You can call me Zuko,” he said with his usual raspy but husky voice, breaking the silence.</p>
<p>She looked up at him with a puzzled expression. “You can call me detective if you ever need help with a police matter but otherwise you can call me Zuko,” he explained quietly.</p>
<p>“Very well,” she agreed. “But then you can call me Katara.” She challenged playfully.</p>
<p>The dark-haired man chuckled lightly before wincing.</p>
<p>“Should’ve let me give you the lidocaine,” she muttered under her breath. She looked up to the small glare that Zuko gave her. It only caused her to smirk in response.</p>
<p>She put on her sterile gloves on and began to prep to suture the wound close.</p>
<p>They heard a small knock on the door and Katara welcomed them in.</p>
<p>Jet had strolled in happily until he saw who she was with. He quickly dismissed Zuko and turned to Katara.</p>
<p>“Sorry to bother you Katara but we’re ordering food and stuff from the Jasmine Dragon. Would you like anything?”</p>
<p>Her eyes immediately light up. “Ooh! Yes! Can you get me a ginseng tea and an orange scone?”</p>
<p>“You bet.” he responded eagerly. He looked at Zuko with a frown when Katara wasn’t looking.</p>
<p>“Thanks Jet, you’re the best,” she said without looking back at the man, focusing her attention back to her work.</p>
<p>He nodded back in acknowledgement before quietly exiting the room.</p>
<p>“I love that place,” she said out loud, mostly to herself.</p>
<p>Zuko raised his good eyebrow. “Oh yeah?”</p>
<p>She looked up with a blinding smile. “Best tea and treats in the whole city,” she exclaimed proudly. “have you ever been?”</p>
<p>Zuko scoffed lightly. It was definitely an understatement. He had grown up in the apartment right above the shop since his uncle owned the establishment.</p>
<p>“Once or twice,” he lied. Not wanting to give much away.</p>
<p>He stared at her as she worked meticulously suturing him back up.</p>
<p>She was a sight fore sore eyes.</p>
<p>“That’s a lovely necklace,” the words escaped his mouth before he could stop them.</p>
<p>“Thank you. It was my mother’s” She responded without looking up.</p>
<p>Zuko took a moment to analyze it. It was a thin ribbon material that held up a moon charm.</p>
<p>Katara glanced up at him and gave him a smile. “My dad didn’t have money for a ring when he decided to propose to my mom so he got her this instead,” she explained. “When she passed away many years ago, she left it for me.”</p>
<p>Zuko swallowed. “I’m sorry Katara,” he whispered lowly.</p>
<p>She glanced up at him and gave him a small smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.</p>
<p>She cleared her throat before changing the conversation.</p>
<p>“So, Zuko, how exactly did this happen?” she asked with curiosity.</p>
<p>“Training accident,” he explained with a shrug. “The new recruits aren’t very bright. One of them didn’t think the knife would be sharp.”</p>
<p>She laughed lightly. It was a good thing that she couldn’t hear Zuko’s heartbeat increasing with the sound.</p>
<p>“That doesn’t make me feel very safe,” she poked fun at him.</p>
<p>Jet returned to the room with a bag of meds for Zuko and hovered a bit before Katara reassured him she was fine.</p>
<p>A few moments later she finished her sutures and looked up at him. He stared back at her, trying to breathe as calmly as possible.</p>
<p>“You’re lucky scars are sexy,” she said lowly, looking at the scarred portion of his face before locking eyes with him.</p>
<p>Zuko gulped before recovering and replying.</p>
<p>“Oh yeah? Because I can go find Haru and ask him to grab his knife again.”</p>
<p>She rolled her eyes lightly. “Now you’re just being greedy.”</p>
<p>He chuckled, trying to hide his nerves. Had Katara really said that to him while looking at his scar?</p>
<p>She asked him to stand as she placed a small bandage on his abdomen over his stitches. She couldn’t help but admire how firm and toned his body was.</p>
<p>His arms alone could cause chaos amongst the female hospital staff.</p>
<p>She handed him his shirt and took a long look wile he buttoned it back on and wasn’t looking at her.</p>
<p>After he finished gathering himself, she handed him a small bag with medications.</p>
<p>“Instructions for the medications are on the bottle, you can get the stitches removed with your normal doctor in 10 days” she explained. “Have a goodnight Zuko, I’m sure Trixie misses her man,” she teased with a wink before slipping through the door and back into the craziness that was her life.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think. I will very likely be done with this soon as it is meant to be a small fun project while I continue to work on my other Zutara fic (Part of Me).</p>
<p>PS this chapter and the title of the fic was inspired by Owen and Alex from the show Nikita, eek! Love them so much.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3 - Interlude</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I will be adding some interlude chapters which are essentially happening outside of the hospital with either Zuko or Katara. Enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Iroh sat across from Bumi as the two enjoyed their weekly game of Pai Sho. Every Thursday evening for as long as they could remember, they would sit down for a game in the recreation center in the heart of Republic City.</p><p>The two men were both war veterans and had served to create peace amongst the various nations. They remained close friends over the decades.</p><p>Iroh slid a tile after some careful deliberation.</p><p>Bumi looked up at him with a wicked expression and made the next move. Former General Iroh frowned.</p><p>“A fine move, Bumi.” He complimented as he stroked his grey beard. Iroh analyzed the board and continued to fill the space with conversation.</p><p>“So tell me, how is our plan coming along?” he asked.</p><p>Bumi sighed. “Iroh, you worry about Zuko too much.”</p><p>“Of course I do. He works too hard. And he isn’t getting any younger, he needs to find a lady in his life. One that can handle the challenges of his career.” He said carefully.</p><p>His mind thought about how his nephew had his heart broken a few years ago at the age of 23. He had been dating a girl named Jin. She was a very nice girl and had even been the one to ask out Zuko to begin with. He slowly fell more and more in love with her. Unfortunately, his job put him in a lot of danger, especially after he made detective and she ultimately ended things, leaving a heartbroken Zuko behind.</p><p>Both Bumi and Iroh had discussed the possibility of finding someone for Zuko. Without his knowledge of course, he would never go for it if he thought they were meddling in his life. Plus, they just wanted to push him in the right direction and see if anything came out of it.</p><p>“Katara is a very agreeable young lady,” Bumi replied. “She is very smart and is not afraid to stand up for herself. She has put many people in their place at the hospital when they have doubted her abilities.”</p><p>Bumi gave his roaring laughter at the thought. “I do believe that Zuko seems to agree. I’ve been in the room with the two of them and they find one another interesting.”</p><p>Iroh beamed at the news. His eyes crinkling in the corners.</p><p>He recalled seeing the young doctor at the Jasmine Dragon Tea Shop a few times. She was a very beautiful young lady and had impeccable manners. He also approved of her preference of tea over coffee, as any respectable person would.</p><p>“However,” Bumi interrupted the rest of Iroh’s thoughts. “She is very coveted at the hospital. There are many employees whose eyes she has caught. Although she does not seem to return their affections but Zuko must step up sooner rather than later,” he warned.</p><p>Iroh narrowed his eyes at the board. He slide his tile and smiled widely. “Ah, yes. I will be sure to give him a bit of encouragement,” he replied reassuringly.</p><p>It was Bumi’s turn to frown at the board. He looked up at Iroh who wore a slightly smug expression. He reached into his back pocket for his wallet and pulled out a few silver coins. This was the second week in a row he had lost.</p><p>“Same time next week?” Iroh collected the coins and placed them into his pocket.</p><p>“Of course, old friend.” They put the board away and began heading out towards the parking lot.</p><p>Zuko was waiting for his uncle in his Dodge Charger. He rolled down the window to greet Bumi and unlocked the door for his uncle.</p><p>“Ah, nephew, good to see you.” He stepped into the vehicle and they began making their way to the Jasmine Dragon. They had dinner together every Thursday after Pai Sho and at least 1 more night out of the week whenever Zuko wasn’t working.</p><p>“So who won this time Uncle?”</p><p>Iroh smiled brightly. “Why I did, of course,” he responded proudly.</p><p>They enjoyed peaceful silence on their way to the shop. Zuko helped his uncle set the table while the other man finished dinner.</p><p>Dinner was served and Zuko and Iroh sat across one another in the small dining room of the loft above the Jasmine Dragon. They discussed how business was going and how the shop would prepare for the Valentine’s Day holiday coming up in a few months.</p><p>An hour had passed and Iroh served tea after dinner was put away. This was their weekly dinner tradition.</p><p>“So,” Iroh began, he served his nephew a cup of calming Jasmine tea. “There was a nice young lady that stopped by the shop this week.”</p><p>Zuko remained quiet, unsure as to where the conversation was headed.</p><p>“I was wondering if you knew her. She works at RCGH,” he explained, sipping his tea.</p><p>Zuko gave him a confused expression. There were hundreds of employees at the hospital. He was also bad at remembering their names for the most part unless it was of relevance to a case.</p><p>He remained quiet and took a sip of his tea.</p><p>“Her name is Dr. Katara Rivers,” Iroh told him.</p><p>He watched as Zuko’s eyes widened and he choked on his tea, coughing multiple times.</p><p>“Are you alright, nephew?” Iroh asked, truly concerned for the other man.</p><p>“I’m fine,” he croaked out. He took a moment to steady his breathing.</p><p>He guessed he shouldn’t have been so surprised since Katara had mentioned that she was an avid fan of the Jasmine Dragon.</p><p>“Yeah, I’ve met her once or twice,” Zuko responded after a moment, failing to meet his uncle’s eyes. His mind drifted to thoughts of Katara. He would be lying if he said he hadn’t thought of her various times. It had been over a month since he last saw her. She had done a wonderful job on his stitches, the scar was small and barely noticeable.</p><p>He’d had a few calls to the hospital while following a lead on some cases but he hadn’t ran into her much to his dismay.</p><p>“Mmm,” Iroh hummed. “She’s a very agreeable young lady with a fine taste in tea,” he complimented. “She also happens to be single.”</p><p>“Uncle!” Zuko's head snapped up and he let out an exasperated sigh. He should have known better. His uncle was very sneaky.</p><p>“What?” the older man replied with an innocent look. “Do you not think her to be an agreeable young woman?”</p><p>“No, I-“ he sighed and rubbed at the back of his neck. He knew better than to lie to his uncle.</p><p>“I, I think she’s incredible,” he relented. He looked down at his teacup and hoped his blush wasn’t too obvious.</p><p>Iroh smiled softly and continuing sipping his tea. He knew it was hard for Zuko to admit to his feelings, so this confession was monumental.</p><p>They remained quiet until they finished their tea. Iroh didn’t press the matter any further but he was very satisfied by his nephew’s response.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I am overjoyed by how much everyone has enjoyed this! &lt;3<br/>Would you all like for this to be longer? I have lots of ideas or maybe I'll continue a part 2.<br/>Anywho, thank you for all of the lovely comments, subscriptions, and kudos! They seriously make my day.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Zuko groaned as he sat down on the hospital bed. He wore a blue tank with his last name on the back and the Republic City Police Department logo on the front. Tonight had turned into a nightmare. What had started as a charitable event quickly grew aggressive quickly.</p><p>Every year he participated in Battle of the Badges against the Republic City Fire Department. It housed various boxing matches and the police department faced off against the fire department. All proceeds went to a charity in Republic City. It was all for a good cause and it was also a great way for him to release his anger.</p><p>He had won his match against his opponent but outside of the ring a brawl erupted and each department was pinned against one another. That’s how Zuko ended up with the corner of his only eyebrow cut open slightly and bruised ribs.</p><p>His work partner had driven him to the hospital even against his wishes. He had repeatedly told her that he was more than capable of driving himself but June refused.</p><p>“So where’s your hot doctor girlfriend?” June asked, pulling back the curtain to the hall and eyeing people curiously as they walked by.</p><p>“She’s not my girlfriend!” Zuko responded defensively, wincing slightly and clutching his side.</p><p>June rolled her dark eyes in response. “Oh please, you can’t stop talking about her. It’s sickening… in a cute way.” She wore a wicked smirk and Zuko visibly frowned. “I don’t talk about her that much,” he grumbled.</p><p>They waited for a few moments, cracking a few jokes about the idiot firefighters when Katara ripped open the curtain and entered the room.</p><p>She took in the sight before her. Zuko had been laughing at a joke made by the woman sitting next to him. The woman was tall and had striking features even though she wore all black which matched her long dark hair that covered a portion of her face.</p><p>“Good evening,” Katara said simply. She looked over his chart before bothering to look at him.</p><p>June took a moment to rake her eyes over Katara from head to toe. After she finished she stood up and excused herself.</p><p>“I’ll come back and get you when you’re done. I need to get a few things for dinner.” She told him as she made her way out.</p><p>Zuko nodded and then rolled his eyes when June discreetly pointed at Katara and gave him two thumbs up quietly in approval.</p><p>He chanced a glance at Katara who had spent too long looking over his chart, avoiding his gaze.</p><p>Jet stepped in the room and handed Katara a set of x-rays. She thanked him and he made his way out but not before emphasizing that he could stay and help with whatever she needed.</p><p>Zuko fought the urge to scoff. The man was resilient, he would give him that.</p><p>“Your x-rays look decent, you’ll just have a bruise over your rib cage for a few days.” She took out her stethoscope and took a listen to his heart and lungs.</p><p>She was so close that he could smell her perfume. It was intoxicating. He closed his eyes as he breathed it in discreetly.</p><p>Katara drew back and began to put on gloves to work on the cut over his eyebrow.</p><p>He couldn’t help but notice that she didn’t seem like her normal cheerful self. She looked tired and as if something was bothering her.</p><p>“Are you okay?” His eyes traced over her face in concern.</p><p>She gave him a small smile. “I feel like I should be asking you that,” she responded easily.</p><p>He shrugged his shoulders. “You just don’t seem like yourself tonight,” he explained.</p><p>She leaned over him to analyze his eyebrow. He winced slightly as she palpated around it. “It’s just been a tough night. I lost two patients before I could get them up to the OR. They were in pretty bad shape.”</p><p>He nodded and bit down on his lip. She worked silently and cleaned up his cut and placed a small staple to close it.</p><p>When she was done and began to move away from him, he reached his hand out to lightly grab onto her arm. Her sky blue eyes locked onto his amber ones.</p><p>“I’m sorry to hear that Katara,” he whispered softly. “I know what it's like to lose people you’re trying to save but I’m sure you did everything you could. And if they were in that bad of shape then they may not have had the best chance of survival anyways. But don’t beat yourself up. You’re a great doctor. Truly.” He emphasized. He ran a gentle thumb over her forearm in a soothing manner.</p><p>“Thank you Zuko… that, uh… that means a lot.” She gave him a reassuring smile before pulling away from him.</p><p>“So, do you want to tell me what happened tonight?” she asked, changing the conversation. She was facing away from him as she removed her gloves and washed her hands.</p><p>Zuko groaned. He didn’t really want to tell her but he knew she probably wouldn’t let it go. “My sister’s ex-fiancée sucker punched me after our match.”</p><p>She turned around quickly with a gasp. “What?!” she exclaimed.</p><p>He nodded. “It’s the annual battle of the badges and he had challenged me months ago so I agreed. I won pretty easily and afterwards when we left the ring he said something about my sister and tried getting in my face. When I shoved him back, he swung at me and caught the corner of my face, hence the eyebrow.” Zuko pointed at his face. “Anywho, the whole thing started one giant brawl and it got carried away quite quickly,” he said with disdain.</p><p>Katara let out a giggle as she placed her hand over her mouth to try to cover it up. “I’m sorry, it shouldn’t be funny but how dumb can you be to pick a fight with the police?”</p><p>Zuko chuckled with her. “He was never that bright to begin with,” he joked.</p><p>He stood up slowly and was looking down at her. Their height difference evident as he had to lower his neck to properly look at her.</p><p>She looked so beautiful when she was smiling and his heart skipped a beat every time he managed to make her laugh.</p><p>They were close now. Their face just inches apart. Zuko breathed in to say something when the curtain was pulled back.</p><p>“I’ve got the discharges ready,” Jet strolled in without hesitation, not noticing how the two people in the room had jumped away from one another in surprise.</p><p>“Oh, um, thanks Jet,” Katara gave him a smile and took the papers in her hand.</p><p>“Anything for you Katara,” he replied sweetly.</p><p>Zuko knew his face wore a scowl now.</p><p>She nodded and turned back around to Zuko.</p><p>“One more thing,” Jet interrupted, getting closer to her. “Are you still planning on getting drinks with the rest of us after you get off? I could wait for you and we can walk over together,” he suggested, looking at her hopefully.</p><p>She paused and shot Zuko an apologetic look. Jet was being incredibly unprofessional.</p><p>“Sure.” She said quickly, trying to shoo the man out of the room before things got even more awkward.</p><p>“Great!” He shot Zuko a smug smile and gave him a knowing look before darting out of the room.</p><p>Katara turned back to Zuko and handed him the set of papers. “You know the drill,” she said teasing him lightly. Her eyes drifted away momentarily. “Um, would you like me to call your, um, female companion to come get you?” she asked evenly, trying to not give anything away in her tone.</p><p>Zuko’s eyes widened. “My who?!” he exclaimed, shock written all over his face.</p><p>“The, um, woman that was here,” she said softly. “The one you’re having dinner with?” she asked, feeling mortified at how insecure she sounded.</p><p>Zuko huffed out a strained laugh. “June?” he sighed and ran a hand down his face. “She’s my work partner,” he explained. “She’s also married to my childhood best friend Toph. So trust me when I say she’s not really interested in playing for my team.”</p><p>“Oh,” Katara said simply. When would she stop making the wrong assumptions about this man?</p><p>“Yeah,” he chuckled lightly, giving her a heated smirk that caused her to gulp.</p><p>Before either of them could say anything more the overhead speakers came on.</p><p>
  <em>Code Blue, Room 21, Code Blue.</em>
</p><p>“Oh shit,” she hissed. She quickly pulled the curtain back and ran down the hallway towards the coding patient.</p><p>“So now that we’ve established there isn’t a woman in my life, maybe we could do dinner sometime?” Zuko whispered to himself lamely, frustrated at another missed opportunity.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I can't wait to share the next chapter &lt;3<br/>thank you for reading, commenting, and leaving kudos! love you all!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter 5</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>A group of pirates invade the ICU.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Zuko was cranky. It was close to 11pm and he had left his loft at 7am for work. His unit had caught a lead on a case that had gone cold for a few weeks causing everything to resurface. This meant that they were working overtime to put the pieces together.</p>
<p>This is how him and June found themselves at RCGH to interview a female victim.</p>
<p>“Piando better be buying us lunch tomorrow,” he grumbled as the automatic doors to the hospital opened up. Their sergeant was working them to an early grave.</p>
<p>June strolled to the circulation desk. “Yeah, that’ll be the day.” She dropped their conversation to ask the nurse the room number to the person they were looking for.</p>
<p>Zuko brought a hand to his mouth to cover an overdue yawn. He zoned out as the nurse spoke to his partner.</p>
<p>He refocused when a hand waved in front of him. “Huh?”</p>
<p>June shook her head. “I think I can take it from here. Why don’t you get a coffee and I’ll come find you after I’m done? The victim is a female so she will likely be more comfortable with just me in the room anyways.”</p>
<p>He nodded and they parted ways near the elevator. The cafeteria was closed but he knew there was a vending machine with terrible tasting drip coffee near the ICU.</p>
<p>As he walked down the hallway, he heard a girl giggle. In a hidden corner he saw his least favorite nurse in the world whispering something to a woman in scrubs he had never seen before.</p>
<p>He rolled his eyes and walked quietly past them, going unnoticed. He figured he couldn’t be too annoyed since this hopefully meant he had given up on chasing after Katara.</p>
<p>The first thing he noticed as he crossed the backpart of the ICU hallway was that they were ridiculously busy. No one even spared him a glance as he took the shortcut.</p>
<p>The second thing he noticed was a handful of grown men dressed up as pirates, overflowing in one of the rooms. The men appeared to be drunk out of their minds. Some of them swaying side to side trying to keep themselves up.</p>
<p>Zuko scoffed and shook his head in disgust. He continued his walk, determined to make it to the coffee machine until a familiar voice froze him in place.</p>
<p>“<em>Sir, I need you to wait outside so I can tend to your friend</em>.”</p>
<p>Zuko turned and could see Katara with her back facing him trying to push back on the pirates in costume. She looked beyond annoyed as she tried to get around him, the man clearly blocking her way.</p>
<p>He curled his fists tightly and felt his whole body go rigid.</p>
<p>“I’m sure he can wait doc, I just want to get to know you better,” he sneered. He tried to step closer to Katara and when she stepped back he attempted to pull her in forcibly.</p>
<p>Zuko immediately rushed towards the door and witnessed as Katara slapped the man square across the face.</p>
<p>“You bitch!” The pirate yelled out. Fuming the man wound his hand back, ready to strike her with the back of his hand. Katara gasped and closed her eyes waiting for the impact.</p>
<p>“I wouldn’t try that if I were you,” a voice growled. She opened her eyes to see Zuko catching the man’s arm and twisting it behind the pirate’s back causing him to cry out in pain.</p>
<p>“What the hell?” the man exclaimed. Zuko pushed the man into the nearest wall and promptly handcuffed him. He then turned the man around and pushed him back against the wall forcefully with his forearm against the man’s neck.</p>
<p>Golden irises glared into the pirate’s brown ones causing the man to cower. “You’re under arrest,” Zuko explained, his voice dark and threatening.</p>
<p>“Looks like I missed the party,” June stated, walking into the room.</p>
<p>Zuko stepped back and glanced at his partner. They exchanged a wordless look and she guided the pirate out of the room.</p>
<p>He turned around and stared at the other men in the room. “If any of you step out of line tonight, I can assure that you will join your buddy over there in a holding cell downtown.” He threatened, looking around the room. They all stared back at him frozen, but each managed a weak nod.</p>
<p>A gentle hand on his elbow shook him free from his anger.</p>
<p>Katara applied enough pressure to guide him out of the room. Her face full of concern. “Are you okay?”</p>
<p>Zuko blinked and stared at her with a confused expression. “Am I okay? I think I should be the one asking you that.”</p>
<p>She huffed out a small laugh and looked up at him through her eyelashes giving him a smile. “Not the first time a guest has gotten out of line… but definitely the first time I’ve had to slap a pirate silly,” she confessed.</p>
<p>His amber eyes met her blue ones intently. “You know that slap could be heard in Caldera City. If you ever decide this isn’t the profession for you, I’m sure you’d make a hell of a cop,” he joked.</p>
<p>He watched as her smile widened and she laughed. That same sound that always caused his heart to race.</p>
<p>“I’ll take that under advisement,” she responded cooly.</p>
<p>Zuko scratched the back of his head, his natural awkwardness spilling over as he debated what more he could say.</p>
<p>Before he could continue to overthink, Katara closed the distance between them and rose to her tip toes as she leaned forward and placed a quick kiss on his cheek below his scar.</p>
<p>“What was that for?” he asked quietly, a blush creeping up both of his cheeks.</p>
<p>“For saving me from the pirates,” she replied with a smirk. He watched as she bravely turned away and headed back into the room to tend to her patient.</p>
<p>His cheek warmed where she had placed her delicate lips. He smiled softly as he brought his hand up to where she had kissed him.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Hello all! Sorry for the much overdue update but I had to move across the state after a major life change. I look forward to wrapping this bad boy up soon.</p>
<p>Thank you for all of the support and love &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter 6</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>It's Lover's Day in Republic City</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Lover’s Day in Republic City truly felt like an official holiday. All around the city people were scrambling to get gifts for their significant other. Unlike some other celebrations, both parties presented gifts to a loved one in honor of Oma and Shu.</p><p>Zuko found himself at the Jasmine Dragon visiting his uncle and have their biweekly business meeting.</p><p>Upon entering Zuko couldn’t help cringe at all of the lovey dovey decorations his uncle had placed around the shop. It felt like cupid had thrown up in the teahouse.</p><p>“Is all of this truly necessary uncle?” he ducked to avoid running into paper hearts that hovered from the ceiling.</p><p>Iroh chuckled and rubbed his belly. “Why of course, nephew!” he replied easily. “It also helps attract customers. There are plenty of women that enjoy a well brewed tea. The tea gift sets are selling very well.”</p><p>Zuko refrained from scoffing and instead sat across his uncle in a small office in the back of the store. His uncle poured him some chamomile tea and Zuko hummed at the refreshing taste of it.</p><p>They discussed business as usual. Things were going very well and if they wanted to, they could open up another store at a different location in the city.</p><p>Zuko smiled sheepishly as he saw his uncle’s excitement when they discussed the possibility.</p><p>They finished drinking their tea and made their way back into the tea serving area.</p><p>“So, nephew, do you have any plans this evening?” Uncle Iroh asked, attempting at being nonchalant.</p><p>Knowing he couldn’t see him, Zuko rolled his eyes. “No, Uncle. Nothing special planned for this evening. I will be heading home soon.”</p><p>Iroh narrowed his eyes slightly before breaking into a big smile. “Well then, I guess you will not mind making a special delivery on your way home.” He clasped Zuko on the shoulders lightly.</p><p>“Don’t we have a delivery boy?” His nephew argued.</p><p>“I gave Bolin the day off. Something about him wanting to surprise a young lady name Korra.”</p><p>Zuko pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed in resolution. “Fine. Just get it ready and I’ll take it.”</p><p>“Excellent!” Iroh cheered as he began to get things ready.</p><p>A few minutes passed and Iroh handed Zuko one of their nicer catering bags and a ticket with instructions on where he was going and who he would be delivering to.</p><p>Zuko took the bag and began to walk away but halted when he read who the recipient was.</p><p>“Uncle…” he groaned. “You’re meddling, aren’t you?” he accused.</p><p>Iroh held his hands up. “I am not, nephew. I am just fulfilling an order that came to the store,” he answered honestly. “But if there was ever a time to show a pleasant young lady your intentions, today is the day.”</p><p>Zuko’s shoulder slumped and he watched as his uncle quietly continued working.</p><p>The order was for a Katara Rivers to be delivered to Republic City General Hospital. She had ordered a pair of scones and a small bag of the ginseng tea leaves.</p><p>He sighed and walked to the inventory closet.</p><p>Iroh observed discreetly as his nephew grabbed a wooden box containing specialty tea that they reserved for the occasional holiday gift. He smiled when he saw Zuko also included a custom Jasmine Dragon tumbler that had great insulation to keep teas warm.</p><p>Zuko walked out and purposely ignored looking at his uncle.</p><p>Before getting in his car, he made one last stop: the flower shop.</p>
<hr/><p>It didn’t take long to arrive at the hospital. The bag suddenly felt heavier as he gripped the handles a little tighter.</p><p>“Hey Song,” he greeted the nurse at the circulation desk who always looked overly excited.</p><p>“Detective Sozin! Hi!” she responded cheerily.</p><p>He coughed into a curled fist. “Um, do you know where I can find Dr. Rivers? I’ve got something for her.”</p><p>Song’s smile faltered which he found strange.</p><p>When Zuko held the bag up in his hand her smile quickly returned. She appeared to be relieved. Again, strange.</p><p>“She’s in a room but she should be out soon. Do you want to leave it here? I can give it to her when she comes out.”</p><p>“No!” he answered quickly. “I can wait,” he said in a calmer tone.</p><p>Song gave him a curious look but nodded nonetheless.</p><p>He let out a nervous breath and to walk the hallway to calm his nerves. He looked at all of the pictures of the hospital staff that were presented on framed pictures on the wall.</p><p>He couldn’t help but smile when he came across Katara’s picture under the first-year emergency residents. She smiled brightly and her blue eyes were highlighted against the background.</p><p>Zuko stepped back and felt himself collide with something. He immediately turned around and leveled the other person, helping them find their balance.</p><p>“Sorry,” he blurted out quickly.</p><p>Katara straightened herself out and when she looked up at who it was, she couldn’t help the grin that formed on her face.</p><p>She stared at him for a moment, causing Zuko to squirm slightly under her gaze. The bag in his hand did not go unnoticed by the resident doctor.</p><p>“Detective Sozin, don’t tell me the city isn’t paying you enough that you have to seek a second job as a delivery boy,” she teased. “Any chance that’s for me?”</p><p>He followed her gaze to the Jasmine Dragon bag in his hand.</p><p>He huffed out a laugh. “Yeah – I mean no.” he stammered out nervously. Zuko took a deep breath before continuing. “Yes, this is for you,” he clarified. “But no, I’m not the delivery boy… well not typically.”</p><p>Katara simply raised a curious eyebrow as she waited for him to explain.</p><p>Zuko rubbed the back of his neck as he usually did when he felt uncomfortable. “I sort of own it,” he admitted sheepishly.</p><p>“Own what?” Katara asked. She had to admit a flustered Zuko was entertaining and endearing.</p><p>“The Jasmine Dragon.”</p><p>Her mouth hung open. “You own the Jasmine Dragon?!” she screeched out.</p><p>Zuko nodded and felt his cheeks get warm. “With my uncle. We’re business partners,” he clarified.</p><p>Her eyes narrowed and she placed her hands on her hip. “You said you’d only been a handful of times.”</p><p>He gave her a small guilty smile and shrugged his shoulders.</p><p>“Well, I guess it’s not everyday that Republic City’s detective and the owner of the Jasmine Dragon hand delivers my order of scones. You flatter me, Zuko.”</p><p>His amber eyes stare at her intently. “There was actually something I wanted to ask you.”</p><p>“Okay…” She replied, feeling curious and a little nervous.</p><p>Zuko took a deep breath in. “Will you go on a date with me? I would really like to take you out to dinner,” he mustered as much courage as he could.</p><p>The smile that formed on Katara’s face could easily make his heart stop. “It’s about time,” she joked. “Yes Zuko, I would love to go on a date with you.”</p><p>Zuko sighed in relief and reached in the bag and pulled out a beautiful arrangement of fire lilies. “Good. Then these are for you,” he said as he handed her the flowers.</p><p>Katara looked at the arrangement and admired them, bringing them up to her nose to smell them.</p><p>“Wait – why didn’t you give me the flowers right away? Would you have not given me them if I had said no?”</p><p>“Probably, it’s why I waited for you to say yes,” he teased with a smirk.</p><p>She slapped him lightly on the shoulder and rolled her eyes. “Funny guy,” she mocked.</p><p>Zuko smiled, the kind that made his eyes crinkle in the corner. He was happy. Happier than he’d been in a very long time.</p><p>“Alright, well I’ve taken enough of your time. I’ll let you get back to work. Plus, I have a date to plan. There’s a pretty doctor I’m trying to impress.”</p><p>Katara’s blue eyes sparkled as she smiled back at him. “I can’t wait,” she admitted.</p><p>He bit down on his lower lip and nodded. He turned to make his way out the hospital but turned to face her one more time.</p><p>“There’s a few extra things in the bag, by the way. Courtesy of one of the owners of the Jasmine Dragon. Seems to have a big crush on your or something,” he said, laughing as he walked backwards.</p><p>Katara rolled her eyes playfully and watched as Zuko disappeared out the door. She smiled happily as she walked to her small office space to place her flowers down.</p><p>Her happiness momentarily escaped when a thought came to mind.</p><p>“Wait, he doesn’t even have my number.” She said to herself as she came into her office space.</p><p>She slumped her shoulders but before she could wallow, her attention was caught by a small card on the flowers.</p><p>She opened the message and couldn’t help but her shake her head in amusement.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Katara,</em>
</p><p>
  <em>There will be a 90% chance that I will be too nervous to remember to get your number, so here is mine in case that happens.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Yours,</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Zuko</em>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>We're almost to the end! One more chapter and then possibly an epilogue.</p><p>Thanks for reading and all of your comments. I love hearing from you all &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>